2013 DUCATI MULTISTRADA Complaints

Gas gauge is non functional, and Ducati has not been able to rectify this for many years! Ducati is on revision H of the fuel level sender, and still have non-functionality issues. Not knowing how much fuel can lead to sudden loss of power. It's happened many times on this motorcycle.

Front Brakes do not function at all if the motorcycle is not used for over a week. Brake lever goes all the way to the hand grip, with no resistance at all. "Pumping" the lever yields no improvement. Front brake remains non-functional until the master cylinder is bled (there is a bleeder fitting right on the master cylinder). Front brake will work after expelling a small amount of air from said bleeder. The brake might work for the next ride, but then becomes non-functional again after a few days. Extended stopping distance is obvious. Luckily the rear brake works But front brakes provide 70 to 80% of the stopping power, I feel this is a serious safety hazard. Also, I've been fortunate to notice this when maneuvering the m/c out of my garage.

Rear brake always has soft mushy feel, even after flushing system. Forces me to use front brake as primary braking system. Can be an issue when trying to stop quickly to avoid an accident. Heard from many other Ducati Multistrada riders that this is a common known issue. Since motorcycle in out of warranty, if has not been fixed or inspected by dealer. This has always been an issue since owning the motorcycle, no warning light to provide help in knowing how to fix issue.

I purchased this motorcycle brand new in 2014. Since that time, the rear brake has never worked properly. It is extremely weak and does very little to slow down the motorcycle. It is available for inspection upon request. Many times I have used the rear brakes (in conjunction with the front brakes) and the rears do very little to slow down the motorcycle. In a panic stop situation, the rear brakes don't add anything significant to the stopping power. Multiple dealerships have inspected the rear brake and have told me that the weak rear brake is "normal" on all Ducatis and especially the Multistrada. Some have called the rear brakes "worthless." There were no warning messages, but the problem has persisted since the initial purchase of the motorcycle in 2014.

THE REAR BRAKE ON THE MULTISTRADA HAS A KNOWN ISSUE OF THE BRAKE FLUID BOILING AND CAUSING THE REAR BRAKE PERFORMANCE TO BE NON-EXISTANT. RECOMMENDATIONS HAVE INCLUDED NOT USING THE REAR BRAKE, WHICH IS NOT AN OPTION. I LANE SPLIT, AND THE REAR BRAKE IS PERFECT FOR CONTROLLING SPEED IN SMALL MARGINS. I'VE RUN THROUGH MULTIPLE BRAKE FLUID SERVICES FOR THE REAR AND LOSE PERFORMANCE WITHIN AN HOUR OF RIDE TIME.

REAR BRAKE PEDAL IS VERY SOFT. WITH MAXIMUM FORCE APPLIED THE ABS SEEMS TO EITHER LOCK UP OR FAIL ALTOGETHER. THE REAR BRAKE IS VERY INEFFECTIVE ON THIS MOTORCYCLE.

THE REAR BRAKE IS LACKING POWER CREATING AN EXCESSIVE AND EXCESSIVE STOPPING DISTANCE. IT TAKES SEVERAL APPLICATIONS OF THE REAR BRAKE PEDAL FOR THE BRAKE TO BUILD UP PRESSURE TO HAVE THE ABILITY TO PREFORM ITS INTENDED FUNCTION. BRAKING IS SO WEAK THAT IT SEEMS AS IF THERE IS NO REAR BRAKE AT ALL MOST OF THE TIME. THIS OCCURS AT ALL SPEEDS, ALL RIDING SITUATIONS, AND ALL DRIVING CONDITIONS. REAR BRAKE IS ESSENTIALLY NO FUNCTIONAL.

MOTORCYCLE IS DESIGNED WITH KEYLESS FOB. FOB WILL NOT ALWAYS ACTIVATE THE DASHBOARD AS DESIGNED. BATTERY IN THE FOB AND THE MOTORCYCLE ARE LESS THAN 1 YEAR OLD. THE FOB'S BATTERY TESTS GOOD USING A BATTERY TESTER. THE BIKE BASICALLY LEAVES YOU STRANDED WHEN YOU LEAST EXPECT IT. SOMETIMES YOU CAN GET IT TO ACTIVATE BY HOLDING IT IN A CERTAIN SPOT, BUT NOT 100% OF THE TIME. VERY UNRELIABLE. YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO WALK UP THE BIKE WITH FOB IN YOUR POCKET, AND IT SHOULD DETECT ITS PRESENCE. IT COST ME A $50 TOW. WHEN TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP, THE BIKE MAGICALLY STARTED.

REAR BRAKE DOES NOT WORK. THE PEDAL WHEN DEPRESSED GOES TO THE STOP BUT DOES NOT SLOW THE MOTORCYCLE. THE REAR BRAKE IS COMPLETELY INEFFECTIVE.

THE MULTISTRADA HAS A USELESS REAR BRAKE. WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL IS PRESSED IT GOES TO THE BOTTOM OF ITS TRAVEL WITH LITTLE TO NO BRAKING ACTION TAKING PLACE. THE BRAKE BECOMES TEMPORALITY FUNCTIONAL AFTER IT IS BLED, BUT AFTER 1-2K MILES OR SITTING OVER THE WINTER THE BRAKE AGAIN FAILS TO SAFELY STOP THE MOTORCYCLE. WHILE RIDING DOWN MY DRIVEWAY THE OTHER DAY THE REAR BRAKE FAIL TO STOP THE BIKE I WAS ABLE THE STOP THE BIKE WITH THE FRONT BRAKE, BUT USING THE FRONT BRAKE IS NOT DESIRABLE ON A LOOSE GRAVEL DRIVEWAY AND STREET. AFTER PUMPING THE BRAKES SEVERAL TIMES SOME BRAKE FUNCTION RETURNED, BUT NOT ENOUGH TO SAFLEY SUPPLEMENT THE FRONT BRAKES. MY DEALER USER ICE AND SALES TEAM ARE AWARE OF THIS PROBLEM WITH THE MULTISTRADA, BUT HAVE NOT RECEIVED A SOLUTION THE THE PROBLEM FROM DUCATI. THE ONLY REMEDY IS CONSTANT BLEEDING OF THE REAR BRAKE SYSTEM. I DON'T FIND THAT A SATISFACTORY SOLUTION TO SUCH A SAFETY PROBLEM. MY MOTORCYCLE CURRENTLY HAS 2K MILES ON IT AND THE REAR BRAKES HAVE BEEN BLED TWICE ALREADY AND I'M PREPARING TO DO IT A THIRD TIME. THE FLUID IS ABSOLUTELY BLACK JUST FROM SITTING IN A TEMPERATURE CONTROLLED GARAGE FOR 10 MONTHS(NO RIDING).